This is a chronicle of my evolution as a runner, environmentalist and student of yoga. I aspire to live a fit, healthy, and Earth-friendly lifestyle. My yoga practice inspires me to endeavor to live mindfully, to fully appreciate the wonder in each moment, and to have compassion for all beings.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Green Goodness

Loving spring! There's something magical about seeing the first fruit and vegetables grow, mature and ripen. The picking of the first tomato is an annual cause for celebration in our household, and this event began in a small way today, with the picking of the first vine-ripened, totally organically grown cherry tomato!

First cherry tomato! More vegetarian staples coming soon!

The first full-sized tomato-- ready to pick!

Two on this nice cluster are just starting to turn!

Baby green beans!

Cucumbers - blossoming but not quite showing fruit yet.

Cucumbers, beans and squash.

The first baby summer squash!

Peppers and eggplant.

Small bell peppers - won't be big enough to pick for several weeks.

Banana peppers - we've already harvested some of these!

More tomatos!

Baby grapefruit! Fortunate to get them in this small tree's second year!

Baby lemon!

Basil. I can taste the pesto already!

Home composting station. Every leaf raked, every bit of yard waste, every fruit or vegetable peel or trimming, tea bags, coffee grounds, egg shells, etc, go in here, and are transformed into brown gold. With lots of rich organic compost, there is no need for chemical fertilizers. The plants love it, and happy plants make the best fruit!

6 comments:

Awesome photographs. Yes, the first tomato of the season is the perfect cause for celebration. I am a teeny bit jealous of your fruit. No homegrown citrus for this Montana lady. Isn't composting just amazing!?! Its one of those things that I cannot imagine not doing now. Wait, wait, wait...I can turn garbage into fertilizer!?! Why didn't someone tell me this a decade ago?! :)

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Welcome To Running Green

Running is one of my great passions. I had a dream to run a marathon race. Running Green began for my motivation, as a training journal, to track progress towards my 26.2-mile goal.

Running Green evolved into an outlet for other passions, evironmental activism, yoga, health, fitness and nutrition. It serves as a soapbox on these topics, and as an outlet for other thoughts that may beg for words.

On May 1, 2010, I realized my marathon goal, completing the Gusher Marathon in Beaumont, Texas.

Running is the ultimate Green sport. It is a perfect fit for a sustainable lifestyle; it requires very little investment of resources, is dependent only on my own legs, and keeps me fit virtually for free. I have some modest running gear, but all I really need is a pair of shoes. Running puts me in places where I can enjoy nature. I don't have to use a car; I can run out the door and go wherever my legs will take me. I drive or bicycle to nearby parks for a few of my runs, but most runs start from my front door.

Yoga is an equally green pursuit, requiring no resources other than my body, mind and spirit. It serves as a perfect complement to my running, providing recovery to sore, tight muscles, and adding balance to my overall activity. Yoga is my yin to running's yang.

About Me

Husband, father, friend, environmentalist, health and fitness devotee, vegetarian, marathon runner, aspiring yogi. Other activities I enjoy are camping, hiking, bicycling and kayaking. I'm also a lover of the arts; music, art, poetry, and literature. I support total equality in all forms, regardless of race, gender or orientation, including the right to marriage.